Without Warning
by Explosion-Of-Colour
Summary: In life, the rarest things of all are fair warnings today of what may happen tomorrow... VioletCooper
1. Chapter 1

Okay, first PP fic for me, but had it written for a couple of months and not sure if its in character/interesting or anything so figured I'd post and see if anyone would like me to continue :o) And I am from the UK but I think I used mostly American-isms!

Title: **Without Warning**

Author: **Me :o)**

Rating:**G/Universal**

Pairing/Character:**Cooper/Violet**

"Out! Get out of my office!"

High-pitched squealing immediately followed, along with a child's laughter before Cooper Freedman appeared from his office with not one, but two small blond five year old girls over each shoulder. "Little girls who don't like lollipops are not allowed in my office."

Dell grinned at the sight of the pediatrician who, on occasion, acted like a bigger kid than some of his younger patients. The girls giggled with delight as Cooper dropped them both safely to the ground next to the reception desk, then produced two small chocolate bars, eliciting more giggling from his two newest fans.

"Where did these come from?" Cooper exclaimed dramatically, kneeling to their level. Two pairs of beaming blue eyes starred at the chocolate bars as if they were prized treasure. "You girls don't like chocolate, do you?"

"Yes!" They chorused, nodding their identical blond heads enthusiastically. Cooper handed over the sweets, grinning at their mother as she thanked him, rounding up her two daughters and heading towards the elevator.

"Thank you, Doctor Freedman." Came the identical chorus of gratitude, as they waved goodbye to their favorite doctor.

"That was my last appointment of the day and I am going home," Cooper announced in Dell's general direction, already turning back to his office to collect his things.

"Hey, Violet wanted you for something earlier, said to tell you 'Chloe's at eight'." Dell called after him.

"Thanks, Dell." He acknowledged with a wave over his shoulder, most of the way back to his office already. Dinner out again it seemed. Not that he was complaining. Dinner usually led to movies - either in a theatre setting or more often than not, one of their places, which usually led - and had on more than one occasion - to them being crashed out in what some might interpret as compromising positions. All of which was totally, absolutely and completely fine with him. Let Violet be oblivious, but he'd take whatever time with her he could.

When did I become this pathetic? Cooper chided himself.

&& V&C &&

Half an hour before he was supposed to be at the restaurant, Cooper found himself debating whether or not Violet had ever liked his 911 Porsche. Considering replacing an expensive bachelor car based on his unrequited love for his best friend wasn't desperate, was it? He shook his head, deciding on a royal blue shirt he knew she liked and dark jeans, grabbed his keys and wallet and left, hoping the traffic wasn't too bad.

His cell phone rang just as he was about to start the car, Violet's name flashing up on the screen as the ring-tone chimed to the tune of 'Ghostbusters'. "Hey, stalker." He greeted her cheerfully, imagining her indignant expression appearing on the other end of the line.

"You're just jealous you don't have a stalker of your own," she bit back jovially, the comment, unbeknownst to her, sending a pang straight to his heart at the inadvertent truth in her words. "I got to the restaurant early, you want me to order for you?"

He laughed at her typical Violet impatience, especially when food was involved. "Oh, so I don't get to choose my food anymore?" He teased obtusely, wondering if she'd let him pay for the whole meal this time and not insist on splitting the bill down the middle, though he doubted it.

"Well I'm guessing steak, well done? The same as the last five times we've been here."

"Maybe I was going to be adventurous tonight, but no, Vi, if you must take this one small privilege away from me -"

"Fine, but get here soon, Coop, I'm starving." And with that she hung up, leaving him to grin at her Violet-esque complaints.

&& V&C && _  
_

_Chloe's_ was apparently Violet's new favorite restaurant, having eaten there already three times in the past month. It was a cosy, tucked away type of place that even he would admit served the city's finest pasta dishes, and could very easily be considered a romantic hideaway with its rustic cottage-like charm.

Thankfully the L.A. traffic wasn't too bad, and fifteen minutes later he spotted a familiar mass of brunette curls huddled over what looked like a large glass of red wine. Weaving his way through the tables, Cooper placed a quick kiss on her cheek before sliding into the seat opposite her.

"Took you long enough, and if you order steak again after making me wait I'll hurt you." Violet narrowed her pretty eyes at him playfully, sliding a second glass across the table towards him. "How are the Ronson twins doing?"

Cooper grasped the tall stem of the glass, sipping a little before answering. "Chicken pox is always cured with the world-renowned female medicine that is chocolate."

Violet smiled that smile of hers, the one that was so carelessly sexy it drove him crazy. "I think my patient is developing a mild case of O.C.D."

Signaling the waitress as she passed the table to their right, Cooper subtly ran his eyes over his companion, noticing she'd not changed since he'd seen her in the office that morning. Her red camisole stood out in contrast to what she usually wore, the weather making work-wear impossible to keep completely strict as her shed sweater was testament to. Thankfully the later hour, along with the restaurants excellent ventilation system made the hot L.A. summer heat more bearable. "That was the house call that came in earlier?"

She nodded, draining what was left of her wine. "She's not coping too well with James being in Europe. I think it might be a good idea to up the number of sessions for a while." The waitress from a few minutes ago appeared at their table, notepad in hand, smiling directly at Cooper and he was sure he spied Violet rolling her eyes at the sight. They ordered quickly, Violet adding a second glass of wine to her order which Cooper assumed meant he'd be driving her home that night, leaving him slightly concerned as to whether her patient had upset her.

"You okay, Vi?" He reached across the table, taking her hand, his mind flashing back to the time in the bar he'd finally worked up the courage to kiss her, only to back out at the first hurdle.

She smiled at him, her delicate features showing how grateful she was. "I -"

"Oh my god, Coop! It's been forever!"

Their precious bubble was burst abruptly by the sudden high-pitched exclamation, neither having noticed the third person appear until she was stood over their table. Cooper glanced at the person interrupting what had been a lovely intimate moment with his best friend, before the sudden realization of who she was dawned on him.

"Ginger?" He stood, accepting the enthusiastic hug the 'entertainer' offered, berating himself for not recognizing the woman a second time. "Hey Ginger, this is Violet."

The psychiatrist offered her hand politely, her amused green eyes betraying that she had of course recognized Ginger, even if he hadn't.

"Oh hey, I've heard so much about you." Ginger stated with an infectious smile, which Violet returned with an inquisitive frown before shooting a glance at Cooper.

Later, Cooper would swear that time slowed as he watched the two women interact, and remembered one or two drunken confessions he'd made to his 'entertainer' friend, that were not, under any circumstances meant to have been said aloud, almost sensing Ginger's next words before she said them.

"You two finally got together then? I can't tell you how many times I told this guy to just tell you how he felt -"

She got no further before Cooper grabbed the red-head's shoulders, steering her away before she could unleash any more devastation on his life, however accidental. Panic welled up inside him as the full impact of her words dawned on him. Words Violet had heard. Words Violet wasn't supposed to hear, or at least not from someone else.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you so much for the reviews :o) No idea what's come over me but I wrote another chapter the morning after I posted the first so here it is!

**Title:** Without Warning

**Author: **Me :o)

**Rating:** G/Universal

**Pairing/Character:** Cooper/Violet

Shock, complete and utter shock. There was no other way to describe the look on his best friend's pale features, as he headed back towards their table. Her eyes were cast downwards, absorbed in the velvety red of her wine. This couldn't be happening. This was surely just some stupid dream he'd wake up from, taking note to watch out for certain red-heads he'd bared his soul to in a few weak moments of their friendship.

Slipping into the seat opposite Violet, he stayed silent for a few seconds, waiting to see if she had had enough time to decide on a reaction to what she had just heard. Any sensible person would decide this was a perfect time to finally tell her his feelings, his very very deep so-not-platonic feelings, but he wasn't sure he had the courage, not until she at least could meet his gaze with those beautiful green eyes of hers.

"Vi?" He managed to choke out tentatively, desperately wanting to take her hand, but resisting due to her lack of reaction. It was beginning to convince him the best course of action was to talk his way out of what Ginger had said; put it down to some simple misunderstanding on her part. Something that would let Violet go back to her obliviousness. Something that would mean she wouldn't have to deal with something like her best friend having secret feelings for her.

Her eyes finally lifted, swirls of confusion and trepidation mixed with anxiousness and a touch of anger. "Is it true?"

Cooper sighed, it was moment of truth time, his decision was made. "That I have feelings for you? Yeah, Vi, it's true."

"Feelings?"

"Yeah."

"Friendly feelings?" She asked, her voice betraying her torrent of emotions as they bubbled clearly under the surface, her hands playing intently with the frosted crystal of her wine glass.

Out of nowhere, Cooper suddenly felt as though he was being given a distinctive chance to get out of this situation intact, and, perversely, felt trapped by it. Could he go on like he had been? Listening to Violet's disaster dates and pretending not to be over the moon that her latest date wasn't a possibility for her?

He took a deep breath, reached across the table with both hands to take hers. Studying the jade inflections in her eyes while ignoring the look of panic that had suddenly appeared on her face, he banished all remaining doubt lingering at the forefront of his mind. "Violet, I'm in love with you. Completely, hopelessly and pathetically in love with you."

She stared at him for the longest time, weighing his sincerity and thinking... just thinking, he could see it in her face. The woman never stopped analyzing.

"You-" She began, frowning. "You just want to get laid, Cooper. We tried the friends with benefits thing, remember?"

Cooper rolled his eyes. Of course she'd think that of him. "No, Vi, this is not about sex. Look, this is just about the worst possible way for this to come out, but I have actual, very real, very intense feelings for you." Irritation began to color his words. The scene he'd always imagined when he finally confessed his feelings for her was not anything like this, never had he considered she just wouldn't get it.

His heart lurched as she suddenly looked incredibly upset, her emerald eyes becoming watery as a silence descended between them.

He let a few moments pass before he squeezed her hands with his, for once not being able to read her expressions, waiting for her to say something.

"You've felt like this-" Violet's gaze shot upwards to meet his, just as she wrenched her arms away from him, her features contorting into a fury he'd rarely witnessed from her. "You've had these feelings, and never said a word? Let me make a fool of myself, telling you all about Allen, and my dates and my life? You made me think I wasn't good enough for even your standards by refusing to-"

"Vi-" Cooper tried to interject, taken aback by her anger.

"No! You know what Coop... just no," She grabbed her sweater and purse and was halfway to the restaurant's exit before he even had the chance to take in her words. A few nearby tables cast some curious glances his way, a few watching the slim, spiral-haired woman storm from the quiet restaurant.

He threw some cash down for their meal, though it had never made it to them before the night had taken its dramatic turn, and caught Ginger's apologetic look as he passed her by the bar on his way out. Cooper reached the door just in time to see Violet stepping into a cab, the sight of her figure disappearing into the vehicle solidifying the fact that this had just become the worst night of his life.


End file.
